Torn Apart
by eekers
Summary: The jewel is complete though at what cost? Will Inuysaha forgive Kagome? Will they be able to find happines? And if so, what trials lay ahead of them? KagInu (Ch8Complete as of 3.29.04)
1. Blood Stained River

Torn Apart Chapter 1 Disclaimer: I don't own Inuyasha, Never have, Never will. Ok?  
  
Kagome blinked as the sun's rays peaked in through the small hut's window and landed on her face. She sat up on the futon and stretched her arms over her head.  
  
"'Bout time you woke up."  
  
Kagome jumped at the unexpected voice and smiled as she saw who it's owner was. Inuyasha leaned against the doorframe and crossed his arms against his chest.  
  
"Good morning to you too, Inuyasha." She smiled as she wiggled her way out from under the blankets. She glanced at her watch.. "um.. I mean.. afternoon.." she smiled sheepishly and stood up, looking around to find her backpack.  
  
Inuyasha just shrugged and stepped inside. He sat on the floor, his back against the wall with his sword leaning against his left shoulder. "It's okay, we're not in any rush today, Miroku and Sango are out helping Kaede with a few villagers that have gotten sick and Shippo is um.." Inuyasha stopped and scratched his head. "I honestly don't know where that little runt ran off too.." He looked at her and twitched his ears. "You feelin' okay?"  
  
Kagome smiled to herself as she packed all her bath stuff. "He's probably out playing with some of the village children, and yes Inuyasha, I'm fine." She glanced up at him and smiled again. This was a rare occasion when Inuyasha to just let her sleep in with out any arguments. 'Oh well' She thought. 'Mind as well enjoy it while it lasts.' She lifted her yellow backpack up onto her left shoulder as she draped her towel over her right. "I'm gonna go bathe. I'll be back in about an hour ok?" She said as she walked past the hanyou.  
  
Inuyasha nodded and waved his hand slightly. "Yea, no problem. If I'm not here when you get back, I'll most likely be at the tree." He stood up and gently grabbed her arm. Kagome stopped and looked at him quizzically. "Take this." He said as he handed her bow and pack of arrows to her. "Ya never know."  
  
She smiled while taking them. "Thanks" she said, nodding as she stepped outside into the warm summer's day and down the path to the river. She sighed happily when she finally sat down in the warm water. She smiled softly to herself. Naraku was defeated, finally, yet they only managed to get all the shards but one. Just one shard was now holding her group back from finishing the jewel. She'd only been in the water for about ten minuets before her head snapped to the right to stare into the bushes. Her stomach turned into knots. She stretched her left hand and walked sideways towards a rock that had her bow and arrows, keeping an eye on the bushes. 'A jewel shard. the last one..' she thought as her fingers brushed her bow.  
  
"I wouldn't do that if I were you." Kagome flinched at the sudden sound of the cold voice and looked up. Kikyo was standing on the bank of the river. She smirked and started to walk towards Kagome.  
Kagome quickly picked up her bow and an arrow and aimed at Kikyo. "Stop right there, I mean it!" she wasn't surprised when she saw the older miko laugh.  
  
"I don't think Inuyasha would appreciate that too much if you slay me." Kikyo giggled to herself again as she continued to walk towards Kagome, "He would hate you for it." Before the young girl knew it, the older miko was already in the water, hands around her neck. The bow and arrow dropping harmlessly into the water.  
  
"What.." Kagome gasped, "do.. you want..!?" as she scratched desperately at Kikyo's hands.  
  
"What do you think I want you stupid girl? You took everything away from me, everything!" Kikyo's grasp tightened, "Even Inuyasha, along with the jewel.." hate just dripped from her voice, her eyes flashing with anger. Kagome eyes were wide. Where did she get this strength? She needed to stop this. But how? She glanced at the arrows that sat on the rock not more than a couple feet away.  
  
Kikyo's eyes followed Kagome's. An evil smile tugged at the corner of her lips. Keeping one hand on the girl's neck, she reached over with her free hand and grasped an arrow. She quickly raised it and plunged it into Kagome's shoulder. Kagome screamed in pain as the older miko pulled it out.  
  
Kikyo raised the arrow above her head, grinning, as she contemplates on where to strike next. 'No, this can't be happening, this can't end now.. where's the shard?!' Kagome searched frantically and located it with in the older miko's chest. She struggled as violently as she could and managed to free herself from Kikyo's grip and dropped into the water. 'I'm not going to die today, not by her hands, not when I'm so close to the shard..'  
  
Kikyo dropped the bloody arrow when she realized that Kagome had freed herself. She narrowed her eyes and lunged at Kagome, but Kagome was too quick. The young girl ran as quickly as she could in the waist deep water to the rock with the rest of the arrows, keeping one hand on her bloody shoulder. She grabbed one, but felt a hand grabbing her hair, violently pulling her head backwards. Kagome fell backwards into the water, her hand still gripping the arrow. She felt a pair of hands around her neck again and felt her body being pushed deeper into the water, and then her head colliding with rock. No, she was not going to die today, she was not going to let Kikyo get what she wants. Kagome struggled to keep herself from blacking out. Her lungs started to burn for air. She lifted her right hand, which held the arrow firmly and plunged it deep into one of the arms that held her under the water. She heard a scream, which was muffled by the water, and felt a hand leave her neck. She quickly repeated the action to the other arm, and was finally free of the grasp.  
  
Kagome quickly came to the surface, quickly gasping for breath before she lunged at Kikyo's chest, aiming for the jewel. 'Forgive me, Inuyasha..' Kagome thought before stabbing the arrow deeply into Kikyo's chest. Kagome watched Kikyo's eyes go wide with fear as she fell backwards into the water, the souls of all those she stole flying out of her body, life finally leaving her.  
  
"Kagome." said a pained, broken voice behind her. Kagome spun around. Inuyasha stared at her, and then to Kikyo. Inuyasha breathed heavily, the site in front of him made his chest constrict, making it painful to take a breath. He realized she was naked, and bleeding profusely from the shoulder and quickly took off his kimono and jumped into the water.  
  
"I.she. Inuyasha I'm sorry.. she.." but was silenced when she was suddenly covered with his red kimono and brought out of the water to sit on the grass. He tore a piece of cloth off of his inner shirt's sleeve and placed it over her shoulder's wound and took her hand and placed it on top for pressure. He went back into the water and pulled the dead shell of Kikyo out of the water. He knelt down beside her and pulled out the arrow, and saw a jewel shard fly out and land on the ground. He put the arrow down and picked it up. 'The last jewel shard.it's over.but why did it have to be over like this?' he shook slightly and stood up. He walked over to Kagome and knelt down in front of her. He quickly gathered her into his arms and held her gently, placing a hand behind her head to tuck her face into his shoulder. He felt her flinch and he sniffed the air and narrowed his eyes. She reeked of blood. But not just her own. He pulled away from her and looked down at his hand, which held a few blood stains. 'A head wound too.' he mentally sighed.  
  
"I'm sorry, Inuyasha, she attacked me, tried to drown me.. I.. I didn't know what to do.." tears slid down her face. She looked at her hands and noticed Kikyo's blood stains. She trembled and tried to wipe them clean on the grass. She felt Inuyasha grab her wrists to make her stop. He didn't say a word, just kept silent. She didn't even want to look at Inuyasha's face, nor his eyes. She didn't want to know if he was looking at her or not. He hated her now, she bet. He didn't even say two words to her when he got there besides her name. She blinked back tears and was over came by a wave of dizziness. The next thing she saw was darkness.  
  
Inuyasha felt Kagome go limp. 'Damnit..' he thought to himself. He picked her up in his arms and quickly carried her off to the village. 


	2. Pain, Blame and Guilt

Chapter 2  
  
'Inuyasha and Kagome were gone for a long time' Sango thought as she sat on a bench out front of Kaede's hut, polishing her boomerang, hiraikotsu. She glanced to Miroku who sat next to her, arms crossed. "Where did Inuyasha and Kagome go?" she asked the monk. Miroku shrugged and opened his eyes and turned his head lazily to Sango.  
  
"I know Kagome is at the river, Inuyasha, I dunno, maybe he went to go peek?" Next thing he saw were stars in front of her eyes.  
  
"Pervert.." Sango said as she shook her hand. She placed her boomerang against the wall. She noticed a shadow in front of her and looked up. "Oh my gods.. Kagome! Inuyasha! What happened!" She and Miroku jumped up and motioned them into the hut. Inuyasha didn't say a word. He put her down on the sleeping mat, placing the last shard on her chest.  
  
"She was attacked by Kikyo. Kagome killed her." This brought a gasp from Sango. "I'm going back to get her remains. go find Kaede, tell her to meet me by the shrine." and with that he walked out, leaving a stunned demon exterminator and monk behind.  
  
Shippo ran back to the village after playing with some of the villager children, flowers in hand. He smiled as he saw Inuyasha and started to run towards him. "Inuyasha, you're back! Where's Kagome! I picked some flowers for her and.." he stopped mid-sentence when he realized that the half demon wasn't even acknowledging him. "Hey! Inuyasha!" Shippo jumped on Inuyasha's shoulder and tugged at his ear, "What gives?" Inuyasha didn't answer but just took the little fox cub off his shoulder and placed him on the ground.  
  
"Leave me alone, Shippo." Inuyasha muttered as he walked into the forest towards the river. How could it end like this? His balled fists tight. He finally reached Kikyo's body. His eyes stung, but he knew he couldn't cry. Kagome had a legitimate reason for killing Kikyo. The Kikyo that laid on the ground was not the same Kikyo that he knew a little over fifty years ago. His body shuddered as he forced himself to hold back tears as he lifted the body and ran back to the village. A growl rose in his chest as he gripped the remains in his arms. He didn't want to blame Kagome for this, but he did. His heart felt like it was torn to shreds. No. He couldn't blame Kagome, he couldn't. He was relieved when he finally made it to the shrine and seeing Kaede.  
  
"Thankyou, Inuyasha." Kaede said as the hanyou placed Kikyo's remains on the ground in front of her burial site. It took all his strength to let her go. He stayed on the ground, on one knee blinking his eyes rapidly, refusing to let tears fall as he stared at the dead clay body. This had to happen. Sooner or later it had to happen. He felt a warm hand on his shoulder. "She can finally be at peace." He heard her say. He closed his eyes, sighed, and stood up, his bangs hiding his eyes.  
  
"But at what cost?" he whispered. His body trembled slightly. The day's events flashing through his mind's eye.  
  
"Inuyasha, we have discussed this before." Said the older miko. "The villagers will help me bury her. You should go check on Kagome."  
  
Inuyasha lowered his head and then slowly shook it. "I can't see her right now." He sighed and straightened up. "I want to help with the burial anyway." Kaede nodded and motioned the village men to start.  
  
Kagome woke up to a pounding headache. She didn't even bother to make a move to sit up, instead, she placed a finger on her forehead and felt a bandage that was wrapped around her head. She furrowed her brows and traced the bandage to the back of her head, where she felt a damp spot. 'Oh right.' She looked herself over and felt a sharp pain in her left shoulder. 'Oh yea, the shoulder too..' as she noticed the sling her left arm was in. She put her free arm behind her and proceeded to push herself up. She looked around the hut and blinked a couple of times to rid the dizziness. She looked down to her legs and saw Shippo curled up and sound asleep. She smiled as she gently petted his head. He yawned loudly and rolled over onto his back.  
  
"Yay! You're up!" Shippo exclaimed as he hugged her. Kagome flinched slightly and put on a small smile. She patted his head and looked around the room. "Inuyasha is up by the shrine, if that's who you're looking for. They just finished burying Kikyo an hour ago." young fox demon whispered. Kagome gently placed Shippo on the floor next to her and slowly stood up.  
"I need to see him, I'll be right back, Shippo."  
  
Kagome made her way up the steps to the shrine. A number of outcomes went through her head as she made her way up the endless steps. He could yell at her saying he didn't want to see her anymore while throwing her down the well and sealing. He could tell her that it wasn't her fault, or, he could say nothing. The third scared her the most. Living in doubt. She finally reached the top of the stairs and saw him, back hunched over, face in his hands. Her heart broke at the sight. Guilt tearing through her soul. She slowly walked up to him, and froze not more than four feet away when he spoke.  
  
"You should be resting back in the hut." Inuyasha said. The gruffness and pain that dripped from his voice twisted her heart even more.  
  
"I had to see you." She whispered.  
  
Inuyasha stood up and turned around and before he even realized what he was doing, gathered her into his arms. "I'm so sorry Kagome." He whispered into her hair. She hugged him back gently with her free arm.  
  
"I'm the one who should be apologizing."  
  
Inuyasha pulled away and held her shoulders gently. Kagome gasped slightly as she saw his cheeks stained with tears from earlier. Inuyasha tried his hardest to fight back the unusual feeling to cry as he quietly spoke. "No, you shouldn't be. This had to happen, it was out of self defense." He finally gathered the courage to look into her eyes, but quickly looked away as he remembered how much the girls look alike. The blame against Kagome started to come around again in Inuyasha's mind. He sighed and quickly pushed the thought away and sat down. Kagome sat down next to him. She didn't know what to say after that, so she just kept silent, along with Inuyasha. Deep down, she knew, a part of him blamed her, and that feeling killed her heart. 


	3. Late night fight

Inuyasha Torn Apart Chapter 3  
  
Kagome's watched beeped, breaking the silence of the night. 3 a.m. She mechanically rubbed her eyes and turned onto her side to face the burning embers of the fire pit that was in the middle of the small hut. She slowly sat up and looked to the corner on the opposite side of the room and saw that Inuyasha was sound asleep, his ears twitching every so often. A faint, sad smile crossed her lips as she stretched and stifled a yawn. Making sure the coast was clear, she quietly stepped out of her sleeping bag and crept out of the hut and into the sleeping village. She paused at the doorstep and looked up at the night sky. It's been over three years since she's been traveling back and forth between her world and Feudal Japan, yet it didn't seem like it. She was now 18. It's been five days now since the jewel was finished. Miroku and Sango went off on their own not more than two days ago, while Shippo stayed behind with Inuyasha and Kagome. Time flew by so fast. She made one more glance towards Inuyasha before stepping out into the hot summer air to walk up the stairs behind the hut to the shrine. She enjoyed nights like this, where she could make her way over to a lonely tree that looked over the village, sit on one of the lower branches and look out onto the village. Alone, with only the company of her thoughts.  
  
The young miko grunted as she pulled herself up onto the first thick branch. She was grateful that her shoulder healed quickly to only a dull ache with the help of Kaede's herbs. She settled her back against the trunk and let her left leg dangle in the air. Closing her eyes, she let her mind wander. She enjoyed the stillness of the air. How peaceful it was. She smiled gently to herself, 'Now I can see why Inuyasha enjoys sitting up in trees.I guess he's starting to rub off on me..' She tilted her head backwards to look up into the branches overhead. Sighing, she looked back down towards the hut. Sadness gripped her heart as she remembered the events that took place not more than five days ago. She knew he blamed her, and she knew that he was hiding that blame from her. He kept telling her that it was out of self defense, and nothing could have been done or else she herself would be dead, but deep down, she knew something could have been done. Running a hand through her hair she slowly let her eyes close when she felt the scab from her cut. She sighed and crossed her arms against her chest and let herself slip into a slumber. She didn't notice when the branch shuddered when another being jumped onto it.  
  
"Feh.."  
  
Kagome's eyes snapped open in surprise as her body flinched, sending a chill up her spine as she almost fell off the branch. A pair of strong arms reached out to grab her shoulders, steadying her. She blinked her eyes rapidly, forcing them to become adjusted with the dark. "Inuyasha.."  
  
"Why'd you leave the hut? You're still recovering." Inuyasha removed his hands from her shoulders and crossed his arms under his sleeves.  
  
Kagome shrugged and returned her gaze to the stars. "I needed to think." her eyelids dropped slightly as she looked to the branch in front of her. "I know you blame me, Inuyasha.." her voice faltered as the words slipped past her lips. She nervously picked at a few loose strands that came from her pajama's tank top. Inuyasha quickly looked at her and noticed the patch of gauze still covering her wound on her shoulder. He looked away. He couldn't bear to let her see the pain that was in his eyes, and he didn't want to see the pain in hers.  
  
"I thought we went through this already Kagome." Inuyasha sighed gently. He closed his eyes as Kagome continued.  
  
"If only I just ran away or something, was more cautious of surroundings, wasn't so freaking slow.." at this point her voice started to crack with emotion, she leaned forward, her eyes lined with tears, though her mind forced her not to cry as she closed the distance between the two. Their faces inches apart as she yelled, "Hell! I should of just left her injured instead of making the kill! I could of gotten away after stabbing her arms!" Kagome sighed and sat back. Inuyasha kept his eyes to the ground, his head pointed in the direction of the hut. "Look at me Inuyasha!" She could see him flinch at the harshness that came from her voice. She closed her eyes, regretting how it came out, but she quickly pushed it aside. This was important. No time to play around. She needed him to be honest with her.  
  
The hanyou shook his head and turned his head further away from her. Kagome growled at his stubbornness and reached over grabbing his chin. He resisted at first but she forced his head to turn, till their noses were mere inches away.  
  
"You still blame me don't you? You know I could of handled things differently." She said in a very frighteningly calm voice as she lowered her hand. He stared into her eyes. His heart wrenching, his stomach churning. The pain was intolerable. He averted his gaze to his left. Kagome tried to follow his line of site and gave up and let her hand drop from his chin, and crossed her arms against her chest. "Stop hiding it from me Inuyasha, tell me the truth!"  
  
Inuyasha blinked at the sudden outburst and slowly turned his eyes back towards hers. It was true. He did sort of blame her for Kikyo's death. She stabbed her to death. If she only stopped after freeing herself... Inuyasha shook his head violently to tear away from the thought. "Idiot! How many times do I have to tell you it's not your fault! It was out of self defense! What the he.." he stopped himself quickly as he sniffed the air. 'baka..' he thought to himself as he reached over and gathered her into his arms.  
  
Kagome struggled violently in his embrace. "Inuyasha let me go!" Inuyasha growled as he tightened his hold around her waist.  
  
"Not until we talk this out Kagome." He spun her around so he could look her in the eyes. He saw her narrow her own and dreaded the words that came from her lips the second afterwards.  
  
"SIT!!"  
  
With in a second Inuyasha fell from the branch and crashed into the ground. Kagome muttered as she climbed down from the tree. "I'm going home!" she yelled. Inuyasha tried sitting up, but Kagome was quick to yell out a couple more sits and was already out of site, making her way to the well.  
  
A/N: Reviews would be nice ( Good, Bad, Ugly. Feh.. hehe Next chapter due out by middle of Feb, hopefully sooner 


	4. Home from the well

Chapter 4  
  
Kagome sighed as the blue-ish light from the well faded away, placing her back in her time. She lifted her wrist close to her eyes so she could read her watch. 4 a.m. She hated leaving the Feudal Era so suddenly, and with out a word to Kaede or Shippo, but the tension that was between her and Inuyasha was unbearable. She couldn't be in the same room with him with out feeling her stomach turning into sickening knots. She needed time away from him, and she wanted to give him space from her.  
  
She prayed silently to herself that Inuyasha wouldn't follow her, hoping the half-demon would give her the space she needed. But then again, those are only dreams. She wouldn't be surprised if he showed up in the next day or so. Biting her lip, she grabbed hold of the ladder and proceeded to climb out of the well.  
  
Being as quiet as possible, she slid the door to her house open and stepped inside.  
  
"Kagome? Is that you?" a voice said from the kitchen.  
  
Kagome scrunched up her face and sighed. She tilted her head up to look at the ceiling, closing her eyes, silently praying to any god that would hear her to help. "Yea mom, it's me.." She slid the door shut and went to slide off her shoes and realized she was barefoot. 'Damnit, I left them back at the hut' she thought as she let out a defeated sigh and made her way to the kitchen.  
  
Her mother was sitting quietly at the table, book in one hand and a cup of tea in the other. "What are you doing up so late and coming home at this hour?"  
  
That's it? No Hi! It's nice to have you home! No of course not. It's in the middle of the night and here she is, standing in the kitchen in her summer pj's, barefoot. Kagome sighed, again, and sat down across from her mother. She put her arms on the table and buried her head in them. "It's a long story. Besides, what are you doing up at this time?" She muttered, her voice muffled.  
  
Mrs. Higurashi face saddened. What has caused her daughter so much pain? She noticed the bandage on her shoulder and slight bruising around the neck. She really didn't think anything of it though. Probably just a run in with a demon. She would always come home with some kind of scratch or bruise from battles. She stood up and prepared another cup of tea. "I woke up from a dream and couldn't get back to sleep. Kagome, what happened? Something serious must of happened to force you back at this time and to leave all of your things behind." Mrs. Higurashi stated as she placed the tea in front of her daughter.  
  
Kagome straightened up and wrapped both hands around the cup. She stared into it's liquid contents, feeling tears well up in her eyes. She blinked, demanding them to not fall. Memories of what happened in the previous week crashed through her mind like a freight train run off course. "It's all my fault mama." She whispered, surprised that her lips even bothered to move. Her body shook as her tears broke her walls.  
  
Mrs. Higurashi was quick to Kagome's side, placing a gentle hand on her back and rubbing it in small circles. "Shhh. let's go up to your room and you can explain to me what happened."  
  
Mrs. Higurashi closed Kagome's door quietly after her daughter fell into a fitful sleep. It took about an hour to calm her down. She prayed that Inuyasha would come speak with her soon. She knew he was outside the whole time, watching from the tree.  
  
Inuyasha flattened his ears against his head as he watched Kagome through her bedroom window from the God Tree, sobbing in her mother's arms. Why did he have to drive her away? He stayed there watching until Mrs. Higurashi left and Kagome was sleep. A deep growl in his chest was let out in frustration as he jumped from the tree and started his way back to the well house. He froze at the entrance when he heard his name.  
  
"Inuyasha?" the kind voice repeated. Inuyasha hung his head and turned around to face Kagome's mother. "Is everything okay?"  
  
Inuyasha blinked and shook his head. "No, everything is not okay." He inwardly flinched at how harsh he sounded. He looked up. "Sorry. I didn't mean for it to come out that way." He shifted uncomfortably. "Look, I gotta go." he said silently.  
  
Kagome's mother nodded and gently pulled him into a motherly embrace He tensed at first but relaxed. He closed his eyes, thanking the gods that they gave him another mother. That's what she was to him. A mother. She was so kind hearted and gentle, he was happy that he could have this experience again. "I don't blame you." She said quietly. Inuyasha gave her a quizzical look. She pulled away and gave him a warm smile. "You know where to find me if you need to talk, Inuyasha."  
  
Inuyasha nodded his thanks and opened the well house door and disappeared back to his own time.  
  
"Inuyasha, is Kagome coming back soon?" Shippo asked. He knew that what happened in the past two weeks upset Inuyasha, so he tried to stay on his best behavior and not annoy the hanyou. He had enough stress on him already, and besides, he didn't want to suffer major brain damage.  
  
Inuyasha stayed silent at the question and continued to look in the wells direction from his spot on the grass by the river. Shippo looked down to his drawing and then to the village. He picked up his picture and held it up for Inuyasha. "What do you think?" the young kitsun asked.  
  
Inuyasha glanced at the picture out of the corner of his eye. He saw a picture of the village and five figures. He turned his head and saw that the drawing was of them in front of Kaede's hut. Miroku and Sango arm in arm, Inuyasha with his arm around Kagome's shoulders, while Kagome was holding Shippo in one arm. All of them were holding up one hand with the victory sign, and smiling.  
  
"Nice job." Said a familiar voice and the sound of metal jingling.  
  
"Miroku!" Shippo jumped up onto his shoulder. "Where's Sango?"  
  
Miroku placed the Shippo on the ground and sat down next to Inuyasha. "She's visiting some family in a village a couple of days travel away. I decided to come here to keep myself occupied while she was gone."  
  
"She got sick of you that fast hm?" Inuyasha said.  
  
Miroku laughed gently and shook his head. He looked around and gave Inuyasha a questioning look. "Where's Kagome?"  
  
Inuyasha looked down at the grass. "She's home." Miroku recognized the sad look on Inuyasha's face. He turned to Shippo.  
  
"Shippo, why don't you go show Kaede those pictures of yours okay? I have to speak with Inuyasha." Shippo nodded and ran off yelling 'Kaede!' all the way to the hut.  
  
Miroku turned back to Inuyasha. "What happened? Does it have to do with what happened between her and Kikyo?" He noticed Inuyasha flinch at the name. He sighed when the hanyou didn't answer, so he continued. "You must go back and speak with her Inuyasha. She feels guilty, she most likely feels you hate her. Go put her fears to rest."  
  
Inuyasha growled and stood up. "Whatever, monk." He muttered as he ran towards the woods. Put her fears to rest. "Feh!" he said out loud as he jumped from tree to tree. 'She killed my Kikyo.' He stopped in one of the trees that was by the well. That was it, they needed to get this settled. He jumped to the ground and ran towards the well. This time he was going to be honest with her. He jumped in the well as the blue light engulfed him. 


	5. Forgive?

Chapter 5  
  
"Are you sure you don't want to come with us?" Kagome's mother asked for what seemed like the hundredth time. The black-haired girl shook her head and leaned against the wall. Her brown eyes fell upon the 3 pieces of luggage that cluttered the hallway. She secretly did want to go. Anywhere for all she cared, anything to get her away from what reminded her of Inuyasha. Yet deep down, she knew she had to stay. That 'What if?' voice tugged at the back of her mind constantly. There was always that slim chance.  
  
"Yes Mama, I'm sure. Just make sure you give my cousins my love." She said as she hugged her mother goodbye.  
  
"As long as you promise to give Inuyasha my love when you see him." Mrs. Higurashi smiled at the confusion that came across her daughter's eyes. She kissed her daughter on her forehead and left her in her confused state, standing in the middle of the hallway.  
  
Kagome blinked at her statement. She followed her mother outside and watched from the doorstep as her mama, brother and grandfather walked down the steps of the shrine to the awaiting taxi below. An entire week, with the house to herself. Then it dawned on her. A whole entire, lonely, week alone. She secretly wished that Inuyasha were at her side now to keep her company.  
  
But no, she killed his Kikyo, she didn't blame him really for not wanting to be around her, given the fact that she is Kikyo's reincarnation. Her eyes slowly scanned the shrine and fell upon the well house. The knot began to grow again her gut. Her gaze fell to the ground as she turned around and stepped back inside. 'Maybe a bath will help calm my nerves.' She thought as she slide the door shut behind her.  
  
Inuyasha watched her quietly, deeply hidden in the thick branches of the God Tree. He waited for a few minuets before jumping down and silently stepping into the house. His ears twitched, hearing Kagome upstairs in the tub. He walked into the TV room and settled on the sofa. He was amused with himself at how well he seemed to adapt to this era as he picked up the remote and flipped the black box on. He slouched into the sofa, resting his bare feet on the table in front of him, and the remote on his stomach as he stared at the colorful images that came from the screen.  
  
"Fine! Go to your other love! It's nice to know this time between us mean nothing to you!" said a woman's voice from the TV, followed by a slap.  
  
Inuyasha growled and changed the channel muttering 'Stupid drama' as he continued to hit the channel button.  
  
Kagome stepped out of the tub, feeling refreshed. She stood in front of her mirror and stared at her reflection. Her eyes wandered down to the now practically healed wound on her shoulder. She frowned, knowing it was going to leave a scar. She wrapped a towel around her small figure and walked into her room to change.  
  
She stepped out into the hall after changing into a baggy pair of sleep pants and a baggy t-shirt, with her hair wrapped up in a towel. She stopped at the top of the stairs, hearing the TV downstairs. 'Strange. I didn't leave the TV on.' She quietly walked into Souta's room, grabbing a baseball bat that was next to his bed, and started her nervous journey down the stairs. Bat in one hand, railing in the other, she quietly descended, trying to miss the stairs that made the most noise.  
  
"You can stop sneaking around."  
  
Kagome jumped and let the bat fall to the stairs, clunking loudly as it rolled to the floor. She slowly walked to the door of the TV room, and saw the hanyou, slouched on the sofa, channel surfing. "Inu..yasha?" She asked quietly. "What are you doing here?" She unwrapped the towel from her head, letting her damp black hair cascade down her back while tossing the towel to the floor next to the doorway.  
  
Inuyasha didn't answer. He hit the power button on the remote and the colorful images winked out of existence. She couldn't see the expression in his eyes as they were being hidden by his bangs. "Sit down" he commanded. Kagome quietly obeyed and sat in the armchair that was next to the sofa. She clasped her hands in front of her, nervously playing with her fingers. She stared at her knees that were tucked under her, her bangs hiding her soft brown eyes from the hanyou's intense golden. "Talk."  
  
Kagome raised her eyes to him, narrowing them. How dare he come in her house, unannounced, ordering her around. She knew exactly what he wanted to talk about, but she decided to play dumb. "About what?" she asked bitterly. She stayed silent as the hanyou jumped up, clenching his fists. She heard him growl and she flinched at the sound, closing her eyes.  
  
"About what?! How about you killing Kikyo?!" His whole body trembled, his fists in tight balls, claws cutting into his skin. He felt a small trickle of blood drip down his fingers, but he didn't care. He glared at the girl in front of him. All his anger and blame he felt towards her, the blame he wanted to forget, came flooding back, boiling over, taking over his senses. His breath came out ragged as he stared at the silent girl.  
  
Kagome took a deep breath. Trying to calm herself. 'I won't cry, I won't give him the satisfaction of seeing me weak.' She thought. She gathered as much strength from her soul as she could and stood up. She looked straight into his eyes, took in a deep breath, and spoke. "So it's safe to assume that you wished I died instead of her?" her tone was surprisingly calm, which frightened Inuyasha.  
  
The words that stabbed through his heart seemed to hurt him more than the arrow Kikyo shot him with more than 50 years prior. His eyes widened and he opened his mouth to speak, but she spoke up before any sound came out.  
  
"You love Kikyo. There's no denying that. So I don't blame you for being upset with me. But to even THINK that I would lay down my life and not defend myself when death is hanging over my head.." She stopped and looked away, her hands balled up into tight fists. She closed her eyes, forcing herself not to cry. She had to be strong. He loved Kikyo. Not her.  
  
Inuyasha's body seemed to loose all it's strength. She was right. What was he thinking? His fists loosened and he stepped towards the girl. "Kagome. I'm." but was cut short when she stepped back.  
  
"Get out, go home." Kagome whispered. She hugged herself tightly, keeping her gaze locked onto the floor. "The jewel is on my desk, grab it on the way out. I don't give two shits what you do with it now."  
  
Inuyasha's ears twitched nervously after hearing the girl swear and just stood there dumbfounded. "You. you..don't want to be with me anymore?"  
  
Kagome turned her face back to his, her eyes flashing with anger. "You already chose who you wanted to be with. And clearly it's not me. Go turn into a full youkai, Inuyasha. Cause it's clear to me that that's all you cared about. You never cared about me, the only thing you cared about was the damned jewel."  
  
She stepped forward towards Inuyasha and took hold of his necklace. She started to lift it up, but Inuyasha stepped back, and grabbed her wrists, prying her fingers from it and pulling them away from the beads.  
  
"What are you doing!?" he panicked. No matter how many times he hated being sat, he didn't want the beads removed. It was his precious link to her. He could feel her body tremble from his hold.  
  
"I'm letting you go. What does it look like? I've seen how you looked at me since that day. I remind you too much of her. You can't look me straight in the eyes anymore." She was surprised at how much she was letting out, but she continued anyway.  
  
"Do you know how much it hurt to see you run off to her all the time? How much it hurt to always live under her shadow? Do you know how much it hurts to." her words caught in her throat, she tried to free her wrists from Inuyasha's hands but he kept a firm grip and tilted his head to look into her eyes. She looked away and pushed on, "how much it hurts to love somebody, yet not have that love returned." her voice trailed off, as she closed her eyes.  
  
Inuyasha didn't know what to say. He was speechless. She loved him? He guessed he always knew, but always pushed the thought aside. The only thing he could do was pull Kagome into an embrace. He felt her struggle at first, hearing her muffled voice protesting. "I won't let go Kagome, not this time."  
  
He felt her struggle stop, practically falling limp into his arms. He held her tightly and buried his face into her hair. "Kagome. I'm so sorry. I.I just." his voice caught in his throat. Before he knew it, they were both on the floor on their knees, in a tight embrace. He didn't even realize his legs gave out on him, but he ignored it and hugged her tighter. "It hurts so much, Kagome." Inuyasha whispered.  
  
"Then why." Kagome started to say but was quickly silenced when she saw her face mere centimeters away.  
  
"Because..." Inuyasha started, yet his voice again failed him. He loved her. More than anything. He placed a hand on the side of her face, and made her look into his eyes. He had to make her believe. He leaned forward and brushed his lips against hers. He felt her hesitate, but pushed on and took her mouth in his. He felt Kagome's hands reach up to cradle his face, and her tears drip onto his fingers. He reluctantly broke the kiss. "Because.. I love you too.." Inuyasha whispered.  
  
Kagome was speechless. Was this a dream? She blinked, freeing tears from her eyes to slide down her cheek. She saw him lean forward again, but she quickly placed her hands on his shoulders and stopped him. She shook her head, her body trembling as she gripped his red fire-rat robe. "I.we.we can't do this." She said quietly.  
  
Inuyasha's eyes widened and he griped her arms gently. "Why?"  
  
"Because I can't help but think that I'm just being the rebound girl."  
  
"Rebound girl?" Inuyasha asked quietly.  
  
Kagome sighed, realizing he wasn't familiar with her era's phrases. "Replacement." She stated.  
  
Inuyasha's eyes widened and he pulled her into another embrace. "Kagome, you're not a replacement." He placed a hand behind her head and felt the tiny scar on her scalp. He tucked her head to his shoulder and continued, "Yes, I'm upset that you killed Kikyo.." he felt Kagome tense at those words, "but deep down, I'm happy she's gone. She wasn't the same Kikyo I knew, and it pained me to see that. Now that she's gone.I know she can be at peace."  
  
Kagome flung her arms around him and buried her face into his long silver hair. "Inuyasha, I'm so sorry, forgive me please. I was scared I was going to die. I couldn't do that and leave you behind." Her words just spilled out of her mouth, out of her control. The anger that consumed her earlier melted away, leaving her soul wide open and vulnerable.  
  
"You have nothing to be sorry for Kagome, nothing at all. I'm the one who should be apologizing." Inuyasha wrapped his arms around her and held her tightly to him. "Kagome, you're the only person I care about. Not Kikyo, not the even the jewel. Just you." He gave her a small smile and kissed her forehead.  
  
Kagome leaned over and kissed his cheek in response and smiled, her cheeks tinged with a slight blush. "That's from mama, she sends her love."  
  
Inuyasha smiled at the gesture and looked out the window "It's getting late."  
  
Kagome nodded and looked at her watch and yawned. She then remembered that her family was gone, and she was going to be alone tonight, something she didn't want. She looked to Inuyasha. "Can you um.. stay with me tonight?" she whispered, barely making it audible. If it wasn't for Inuyasha's demon ears, he wouldn't of been able to hear her.  
  
Inuyasha smiled and picked her up in his arms. "Feh. silly girl. You don't even have to ask that, I was gonna stay anyway." He gave her a mischievous smile and walked up stairs to her room to turn in for the night.  
  
..or at least that's what Kagome thought.. 


	6. Regret?

Chapter 6  
  
Kagome let out a small whimper as the sunlight touched her face. She cracked an eye open and looked to the ground. 'Why are my pajama's on the floor...' she thought. She wrinkled her forehead in confusion and opened her other eye. 'If my clothes are on the floor....' She lifted the blanket slightly, her eyes growing wide. She went to sit up, but was stopped as an arm snaked around her waist. That was it. The straw that broke the camels back. She let out a high pitch yelp and tried to get out of bed. In her struggles, she managed to get herself tangled up in the blanket while falling off the bed.  
  
Inuyasha's ears flattened against his head at the high pitch voice that violated his sensitive hearing. "What the hell?!" he sat up quickly in the confusion, hitting his elbow against the wall. "Ow..." he looked at the girl who sat on the floor, who was trying to cover herself up. "Uh, Kagome?"  
  
"Inuyasha?" She said as realization hit her. "I'm naked!!" She clutched the blanket to her small form. Inuyasha's raised his eyebrows at her statement. Her eyes grew wide as she looked to him. "ACK! You're naked too!!" She quickly threw the blanket over her head.  
  
"Well thanks for stating the obvious." Inuyasha smirked as he slid off the bed to change into his pants. He kneeled down in front of the blanketed form and gently pulled the blanket away from her face. "You remember last night? Right? What I asked you...?"  
  
Kagome blinked, blood rushing to her face. "So it wasn't a dream..." she whispered as she looked away from his strong gaze. She closed her eyes as scenes from the events of last night flashed in her mind. The tender kisses, the soft touches, the night they proved how strong their love was. She smiled sheepishly as she raised her fingers to the spot between her neck and shoulder and felt a little scar. "You asked me if I would be your mate..." her voice trailed as her fingers drifted away from her shoulder and down into her lap.  
  
Inuyasha smiled and pulled her into hug, kissing her lips softly. "You're the one I want to be with, Kagome." He nuzzled his face against her hair. Kagome smiled gently and leaned closer to him.  
  
"Do you wanna go back today?" She asked quietly.  
  
Inuyasha nodded against her head and kissed her hair. "Yea. Everybody's probably wondering what's happened to us." The two slowly got dressed and after a silent breakfast, they made their way to the well.  
  
The familiar blue light faded, leaving Kagome and Inuyasha at the bottom of the well in Feudal Japan. Kagome stretched silently as she stood looking up towards the sky. She glanced to Inuyasha, who shouldered her large yellow backpack, and gave him a small smile. She still was trying to get used to the idea that she and Inuyasha were now technically married, at least by youkai standards, in this time frame. It just seemed so sudden. Was this because he wanted to get his mind off of Kikyo? She looked away from Inuyasha's gaze and glanced up the well to the sky. No, he loved her. Kagome. She could tell by the way he looked at her.  
  
But was he with her just because she's the reincarnation? She closed her eyes and sighed. Again, no, he wouldn't do something like that. She fingered the complete jewel that was around her neck as another question forced it's way through her mind.  
  
What if she became pregnant from the events of last night? She was too young, at least in her time to have a child. 'Oh what was I thinking?!' She thought to herself. 'I love Inuyasha so much, but did we rush into things?' Before she was even able to answer her own question, she was brought back to reality when she felt an arm around her waist and the feeling of air rushing towards her face. When she opened her eyes, she noticed they were out of the well and standing in the open field.  
  
Inuyasha could tell something was troubling Kagome. She seemed more quiet, and with drawn. He let go of her waist made a quick glace to Kagome, who gave him a small smile. She seemed all right. Was she regretting last night? He shouldered the pack to a more comfortable position on his shoulder. He sighed inwardly and started walking down the path towards the village with Kagome following close behind. When he saw the village at the bottom of the hill, he stopped and faced Kagome who was walking towards him a few feet behind, eyes cast downward as if in deep though. Why was she following so far behind? He took a deep breath. "Kagome?"  
  
Kagome stopped suddenly, her head snapping up. "What?" she asked, placing a smile on her face. She tilted her head and raises an eyebrow. "What is it?"  
  
Inuyasha placed the yellow pack on the ground and crossed his arms. He wasn't going to let her go any further until she told him what was on his mind. "What's wrong? What's got you so lost in thought?"  
  
Kagome gave a small, nervous laugh and waved her hand. "It's nothing. Just random thinking." Her smile grew as she moved around him and towards the village. "Come on, I don't want to miss lunch."  
  
'That damn girl is hiding something from me. I know it!' He picked up the pack again and ran towards her. "Kagome! Get back her and tell me what you're thinking!"  
  
"SIT!"  
  
Inuyasha didn't even get a chance to protest before he felt that all too familiar pull at his neck. 'Why hello ground, nice to see you again...' Inuyasha thought sarcastically. Damn that bitch for being so stubborn. "Why didn't I let her take these damn beads off!?" he said out loud as he finally managed to get himself up. He growled and brushed off the dirt from his red clothing and took off towards the village towards his stubborn mate.  
  
"Hello Kaede! Shippo!" Kagome said cheerfully as she walked inside Kaede's hut.  
  
"Yay! Kagome you're back!" Shippo jumped up onto the young miko's shoulders, glad to have his adopted mother back. He raised an eyebrow as he made a small sniff to the air and furrowed his brow in confusion.  
  
"What?"  
  
Shippo blinked at the sound of Kagome's voice and shook his head. "Nothing." He smiled and jumped down. "Where's Inuyasha?" He looked over Kagome's shoulder who currently sat down and set a box of crayons and a coloring book on the ground. He saw Kagome shrug. He raised a brow, and quickly shook his head and turned towards the art supplies.  
  
A few minutes later, Shippo sat up and sniffed the air. "Guess who's back, and not that happy..." he looked to Kagome and frowned. 'They must of gotten into another fight again.' He thought as he looked past Kagome's shoulder. "Hey Inuyasha!"  
  
The hanyou muttered his hello as he entered the hut and looked to Kagome. "Kagome." He said rather sternly. Kagome sighed inwardly and lifted her hand, waving it half hazardly in greeting, as she and Shippo continued to color in the book. He growled softly in his throat at her ignoring him. He walked over to her, took her arm and lifted her to her feet. He pulled her close to him so his mouth was by her ear and whispered, "You. Me. God Tree. Now."  
  
Shippo sent a nervous glance to Kaede. He noticed that she took looked a tad nervous. He stood up, letting a crayon fall to the floor. "Inuyasha, let go of her arm."  
  
"Stay out of this, kid."  
  
Shippo flinched at the angry tone that came from Inuyasha's lips.  
  
Kagome narrowed her eyes at him and attempted to pull her arm out of his grasp. But of course, his grip tightened. Annoyed with the audience, he turned and walked out of the hut, pulling the protesting girl with him.  
  
Shippo blinked at the now empty door in disbelief. That was the first time he's ever seen Inuyasha that angry with her. He wasn't even yelling, but the tone was just down right scary! He looked back to Kaede.  
  
"Kaede, something is different about those two." He whispered as he sat back down onto the floor.  
  
Kaede nodded. If her old eyes weren't playing tricks with her, she could of sworn she saw a little scar below Kagome's neck.  
  
"Inuyasha! Let go!" Kagome tugged her arm out of his grasp when they finally reached the old God Tree. "What's gotten into you?!" She clenched her fists and held them firm at her sides, glaring at Inuyasha in hurt shock.  
  
"I'm the one who should be asking that question!" he growled. Kagome noticed that there was a tinge of hurt in his voice.  
  
"What? What are you talking about?"  
  
Inuyasha sighed and sat down at the base of the large tree. "You regret last night, don't you?"  
  
Kagome bit her lip and knelt down next to Inuyasha. How was she going to answer that question? No, she really didn't regret it, but.... 'Oh this is so hard'. She took a deep breath and looked to the grass. Maybe they can help.... Or not... "I don't regret last night.. it's just.." her voice trailed and she sighed again.  
  
Inuyasha looked away from her, finding an interesting spot on the grass to look at. "It's just what?" he muttered.  
  
"It's just..." Okay Kagome, find your brain... "It's just.. it seemed like we rushed into things...with what happened to Kikyo and all... and... well..." and there her voice goes again, dying with the wind.  
  
"Do you still want to be my mate?"  
  
Kagome nodded with out hesitation. "Of Course. I just wish we had some more time to settle things over before hand..."  
  
Inuyasha shrugged and looked to his lap. "Well, what's done is done." He glanced up to her and reached out and gently to touch her cheek. "I am glad you want to stay with me though."  
  
Kagome nodded and smiled leaned down to rest her head on his shoulder. Closing her eyes and falling asleep. Inuyasha smiled softly to himself and hugged her close to him, closing his eyes, allowing himself to rest. At least for a little while.  
  
Day soon gave way to night which carried with it it's new moon. The couple slept as Inuyasha's features slide to human form. He wasn't even aware of the transformation.  
  
Nor of the eyes that lurked in the bushes near by. 


	7. Precious

Chapter 7  
  
It all happened so fast. She didn't even get a chance to scream. Her voice was lost in her throat. Everything seemed as if it was in slow motion. Her eyes couldn't even register what was happening in front of her. It was just a mass of confusion. Her hands went to her ears as it was being assaulted by a high pitch screeching.  
  
She felt Inuyasha push her away, and saw him mouth 'Run', but she just stood there as Inuyasha held the non-transformed Tetsusaiga in front of him, attempting to hold off a giant demon with his human strength. The demon was nothing she's ever seen before.  
  
"You stupid girl!! What are you doing! RUN!" Inuyasha screamed again as the girl just stood there. Damnit, why did he have to forget that tonight was a new moon! He cursed himself as he gripped the Tetsusaiga tighter and took a breath.  
  
He knew what this demon was after, and there was no way in seven hells that he was going to let him have it. The demon growled and let out another high pitch screech, turning his head towards the young girl. Before Inuyasha could even move, the demon's tail whirled around and hit him square in the chest, sending him flying towards the God Tree, knocking him out the instant his head made contact.  
  
"Inuyasha!!" yet her cries were no use. Kagome tried to run towards the currently human form of the hanyou but was stopped as the demon stepped in the middle of her path. It growled softly and sniffed the air, then turned it's eyes down to look at her neck. Then it dawned on her why the demon was here.  
  
She reached behind her out of instinct and realized her bow was back at Kaede's hut. She mentally cursed herself and raised her hand to grip the Sacred Jewel. She turned to run, but suddenly stopped when the demon magically appeared in front of her, she saw its tail raise and swing around to do the same attack it did to Inuyasha.  
  
She turned again to run, but it was too late. The breath left her body as the rock hard tail collided with her stomach, sending her through the air. She blinked, her mind not even being able to register what was happening. Again, slow motion. In the distance she heard the battle cries of her companions. Heard the high pitch screech again, and then silence. Time sped up as she hit the ground with such tremendous force that she was sure she must of broken a rib or two.  
  
She struggled to stay awake when she heard that her name was being called out. Her eyes were so fuzzy she couldn't make out the owner of the strong arms that gently picked her up. She felt herself being hoisted up onto Kirara and then a pair of feminine arms holding her into place. She blinked, attempting to clear her vision.  
  
"Inu...ya..sha.." she managed to say before she passed out.  
  
~Darkness. That was all he saw. He could barely see Kagome in the distance, holding something in her arms. He couldn't make it out. She was crying. He reached out a hand and try to ask what was wrong, but he couldn't speak. He had no voice. He blinked in confusion as he made his mouth move. He tried to walk towards her, but every time he did, she would only drift further away... till she was gone....~  
  
Inuyasha sat up quickly, his heart pounding in his chest, his breath coming out in strangled gasps. His eyes scanned the hut taking in his surroundings. It was very early morning. The sun just barely started to peek from its slumber over the hills. He brought a hand to his eyes, making sure he was actually awake. What the hell was that dream about? What was Kagome holding? Why was she crying?  
  
He pulled his hand away and realized he was back in Kaede's hut. He made another glance around the room saw his companions all resting soundly on their sleeping mats. Except one. He panicked. Thoughts started jumbling through his head in mixed commotion. 'Is she dead?! It's all my fault. She was kidnapped!'  
  
"Kagome? Kagome?!" he panicked when he didn't hear her respond, but was silenced when he heard movement from one of the mats.  
  
"She's in the other room." A soft feminine voice said. Keeping her voice in a low whisper.  
  
He looked the Sango who looked like she had only an hour of sleep. Her hair was a tangled mess, and her eyes had dark circles under them. He blinked a couple of times and ran a clawed hand through his silver hair. "How is she?" He almost hated to hear what Sango's answer would be.  
  
Sango sighed and sat up further, being careful not to disturb the kitsun that snuggled close to her. "She should be okay. Kaede thinks she may have a few severely bruised ribs, and a concussion." Inuyasha flinched at the answer and looked down to his bandaged chest. Sango rubbed her eyes and gave the hanyou a gentle look. "She'll be alright. You know she's strong."  
  
Inuyasha shook his head, clenching his fists. "It's all my fault." He reached behind him and grabbed his off white shirt and winced slightly as he slipped it on. "If I only remembered it was the night of the new moon..." his voice died in his throat.  
  
"Inuyasha, don't blame yourself..." the demon exterminator sighed. She rested a hand onto Shippo's head and gently curled her fingers in his red hair. "I'm sure she doesn't blame you for what happened."  
  
"And what if she does!?" he hissed. He took a deep breath and shook his head again while slowly standing up. "I'm going to see her..." Sango nodded as she settled back under her blankets and watched him as he walked into the next room.  
  
He stood outside the door of where Kagome was sleeping. He took a deep breath, reached out to the slider door and stopped. He dropped his hand and stared at the door. Why was it so hard to just slide the door open? 'Okay, Inuyasha...get a grip...' He took another breath and slowly slid the door aside. He silently walked in and slid the door shut behind him and stopped when he saw Kagome.  
  
She looked so frail and venerable. He sat down next to her and gently took her hand. "I'm so sorry, Kagome." He whispered. He nuzzled her cheek softly with his nose and sat up when she whimpered. He saw her eyes flicker open and look around the room. They soon settled on Inuyasha.  
  
"What happened? What's going on?" She started to set up, and flinched as pain coursed through her body. He stayed silent. Watching her in pain just tore at his heart. He gently pushed her back to the futon and brushed a few strands of hair away from her face.  
  
"Inuyasha, say something." Kagome pleaded. She blinked a few tears away from her eyes as her ribs flared with pain again when she took a shuddering breath.  
  
Inuyasha wanted to say something, but his words were trapped in his throat. Instead he leaned down and placed a feather light kiss on her forehead. She gave him a small smile and squeezed his hand.  
  
"Do you need any of that aspirin stuff from your bag?"  
  
Kagome gave a small nod and pulled the blanket closer to her chin. "There should be a bottle of water in there too."  
  
After Kagome had fallen asleep, Inuyasha slowly made his way back to his companions.  
  
"How is she, Inuyasha?" Miroku asked as he watched Inuyasha walk backed into the main room.  
  
"She's sleeping. I gave her some of that aspirin stuff..." he sat down in front of the fire and stared into the flames. He looked down when he felt Shippo curl up into his lap. He was about to growl in protest, but stopped. Kagome wouldn't appreciate him getting mad at the kit at a time like this. He sighed in defeat and mechanically scratched the top of the fox child's head and rested his own head against the wall. Even though Shippo did annoy Inuyasha to no end sometimes, he still held a small place in his heart for the kid. He secretly enjoyed watching Kagome interact in a motherly fashion with Shippo, and was happy with how tightly they bounded. Seeing her with the kid made him think about how things will be when he and Kagome start having little cubs of their own. A very faint smile crossed his lips.  
  
"Inuyasha...is she going to be okay?"  
  
Inuyasha blinked when the sound of a small voice broke his daydreaming. He looked down to the young kit who was laying on his back in his lap, his head resting on his thigh. He nodded and gave the kit another pat on the head. "Yea. She just needs to rest. Don't worry about it." He plucked Shippo from his lap, stood up, and while holding him out at arms length he walked over and placed him in Sango's arms.  
  
Shippo automatically curled up against Sango's stomach in her lap making a sigh of contentment and falling asleep. Sango looked down and gave the kit a small smile, then looked back up to the hanyou. "Are you going to be okay?"  
  
Inuyasha nodded once and picked up a futon from the corner. With out a word, he disappeared into Kagome's room for the rest of the night.  
  
Miroku raised an eyebrow and looked to Sango. "Something has changed between those two." He said thoughtfully as he rubbed his chin.  
  
Sango nodded and glanced down to the young fox who slept against her stomach. "I think he finally had the courage to ask her after all these years." She looked over her shoulder to notice Miroku inching closer.  
  
"Do it, and you'll be in worse condition than Kagome." She heard Miroku's defeated sigh and smiled gently. "Good night, Miroku." She slid herself underneath the blanket of the futon she was sitting on and fell asleep for the night.  
  
The poor monk sat there all by his lonesome.  
  
_______________  
  
The day slowly slipped away as the sun gave way to the moon and slipped behind the mountains, leaving behind orange, reds and purples to dance across the clouds. The village fell silent with the night with the exception of a few chirps from crickets and giggles of children in the huts down the dirt road. Inuyasha shoved his arms in his sleeves and tilted his head to the stars that were starting to come out from hiding. He adjusted his back against the roof of Kaede's hut above Kagome's room and sighed.  
  
The more the sky around him turned dark, the more the dream's dark images haunted his mind. Was the dream a warning? It had been one week and Kagome still hasn't fully recovered and it started to worry him. Though there was a day or two where she said she felt perfectly fine, but after walking around for only a few minuets she would collapse to the floor complaining of dizziness. Kaede felt that it was the side effects of the concussion.  
  
Inuyasha sighed and turned onto his side and scratched the back of his neck. There would be some nights where he would stay with Kagome, reassuring himself that she was going to be just fine, and then there were the other nights where the feelings of guilt were just so overwhelming that he couldn't stand to be in the same room. One of those nights was tonight. He sighed and thought back to the fight they had at the God Tree. His brows came together in confusion as the events ran through his head. Was she really regretting that night and lying about it just to make him happy? He sighed. Maybe he did rush her into this. He turned onto his side and pillowed his head against his arm.  
  
The sounds of the night were starting to give way as he heard muffled voices from inside the hut, and the shuffling of futons being put into place. He heard Kaede say something to the sleeping miko and leave the room, but couldn't quite make out what was said. He heard Sango, Miroku and Shippo say their goodnights to him, though he ignored them and turned to his other side and closed his eyes.  
  
Time ticked by and gave way to sometime past midnight. He opened his eyes and sighed. He really should be with Kagome. She was his mate now for crying out loud. Yet he just couldn't bring himself at that moment to be with her. He needed time to be by himself. It hurt to be in the same room with out the overwhelming feeling of guilt washing over his entire being.  
  
She reminded him too much of Kikyo.  
  
He growled at himself for how stupid he was for thinking that. Kagome is her own person, always has and always will be. She was his, and he was hers. He knew Kagome loved him for who he was. Kikyo just wanted him to be human.  
  
He growled slightly to himself again. 'She's hurt because of me, if I hadn't been an idiot towards her... maybe...' His ears perked up as he heard a soft whimpering that interrupted his thoughts. He jumped down from the roof and crept into the hut, making sure not to wake anybody and went to Kagome's room. His face fell as he saw the girl curled up into a ball on the futon. He went over and sat down next to her, and took the damp cloth from the bucket of water that had been placed by her head. He gently washed her face and sighed. If only there was something more he could do for her.  
  
She whimpered and opened her eyes. "Inuyasha..."  
  
"Are you alright?"  
  
"It hurts..." Kagome's face scrunched up in pain as tears slipped down her cheeks.  
  
"What hurts?" Inuyasha gently pushed her hair away from her face. "Do you need more of that aspirin stuff?"  
  
Kagome shook her head and yelped softly as she curled up into a tighter ball. Inuyasha frowned. "I'll go wake Kaede." As he stood up, a scent assaulted his sensitive nose. He spun around to face the girl at his feet. "Kagome?" She didn't move. He dropped to his knees and tossed the blankets back. There was blood on her upper legs. "Kaede!!" He screamed. The young girl looked so pale. Life seemed to be draining away from her. He screamed again for the old priestess. Frantic shuffling was then heard and 3 humans and a small fox came running into the room.  
  
"Kagome!" Shippo screamed as the smell of blood came to his nose. "Why is she bleeding!?" Sango quickly picked up the young fox and carried him away to the other room.  
  
Kaede ran over to Kagome and looked her over. "Well! Do something!" Inuyasha practically screamed.  
  
She frowned and looked up to Inuyasha. "Inuyasha. You have to take her to her time. I can not save her here." She looked up to Miroku. "Could you accompany them to the well?"  
  
Miroku was about to answer but was silenced as the hanyou stood up, the bleeding girl in his arms. "I'll go by myself." And ran out of the hut.  
  
"You're not allowed to die on me Kagome!" Inuyasha screamed as he ran through the woods towards the well. He gripped the girl tightly to his chest and shuddered at how cold she felt. He finally reached his destination and jumped in with out a second thought.  
  
"Mom!! Mom!" Inuyasha shouted as he ran through the hallway of the house, gripping the frail bloody girl close to his chest. His ears twitched as Mrs. Higurashi came flying down the stairs. He turned to see his "mother" standing at the bottom of the stairs, eyes widening.  
  
She gasped and brought a hand to her mouth. "What happened?"  
  
Inuyasha shook his head. "I don't know. She needs help... she's bleeding and we don't know why."  
  
Mrs. Higurashi nodded and motioned him to follow her to the family room. She grabbed a blanket from closet and spread it out on the sofa. "Place her on the sofa and go upstairs to get dressed while I call for an ambulance."  
  
Inuyasha clutched the girl tighter and growled softly, lowering his head to hide his eyes with his bangs. Kagome's mother's eyes softened at his urge to protect her daughter as she walked up to the boy and placed a gentle hand on his arm, and brushed his bangs away with the other. "Please, Inuyasha. She'll be fine. Now please, go change alright?"  
  
Inuyasha did as he was told and quickly ran upstairs to Kagome's room to change into a pair of baggy black jeans and a baggy red shirt that they kept for him whenever he stayed over. He grabbed his hat from the hook on the back of Kagome's door and placed it on his head. As soon as he was about to walk down the stairs, he felt a tug on the bottom of his shirt. He looked down to see Souta standing next to him, hand gripping his shirt, the other rubbing an eye.  
  
"Inuyasha? What's going on? Why are you here?"  
  
Inuyasha messed with Souta's hair. "Just go back to bed alright? I'll send your mom up in a few."  
  
Souta raised his eyebrows and tugged the shirt again. "Something's wrong with Kagome." There wasn't even any room for question.  
  
Inuyasha stopped and sighed. He nodded and kneeled down in front of Kagome's little brother. "Kagome got hurt, so your mom and I are taking her to see your healers. We need you to stay here with your crazy grandfather alright?"  
  
Souta nodded gently and sighed. "Take care of her for me..." he said before shutting his bedroom door behind him.  
  
Inuyasha sighed as he went back to the living room and sat on the sofa, cradling the unconscious girl in his arms. His ears twitched every so often, listening to Kagome's mother on the phone and also listening to Kagome's heartbeat. He brought his eyebrows together in concentration as he listened closer and held the girl tighter to him. He buried his face in her hair and kissed the top of his head whispering his sorry to her.  
  
"Inuyasha?" He slowly brought his head up and saw Kagome's mother standing in front of him, with two men dressed in white uniforms were behind her with what looked like a bed on wheels. He looked back to his 'mom' and gave her a questioning look. He let out a low growl towards the men and gripped Kagome tighter. "Inuyasha, you have to let these men take her... they're only here to help." She gave him a small smile as he gave a small nod. She walked over and gently helped him out of the sofa. "Place her on the bed."  
  
Inuyasha hesitantly set the girl on the bed and grimaced at how pale she actually looked. The healers fussed over her, making sure she was secure to the bed, when his eyes went wide. Her heart stopped. "Kagome!" He lunged forward but was quickly stopped by Kagome's mother. The healers were muttering something back and forth and rushed out of the room with the girl to the awaiting ambulance outside. He managed to free himself from Mrs. Higurashi and ran to the door. Mrs. Higurashi was soon behind him, holding on to one of his arms to prevent him from going any further.  
  
Inuyasha looked on in horror as growl rose in his throat when he saw one of the men open Kagome's shirt and yell "Clear!". He flinched inwardly as he heard a strange sound fill the air and then watched as her body convulsed from the bed and felt Mrs. Higurashi grip his arm tighter. "What are they doing to her!!" he glared down to Kagome's mother and his anger quickly faded when he saw the terrified look in her eyes. He uncharacteristically placed an arm around her shoulder and brought her close to his side. They watched as the ambulance doors closed and start to leave.  
  
Mrs. Higurashi gently patted Inuyasha's back and stepped away from him, her eyes following the ambulance. "We'll follow them, go put your sandals on and retrieve the keys from the hook. I'll meet you at the car."  
  
The drive was only fifteen minutes long, though it seemed like an eternity till they finally arrived.  
  
Inuyasha drummed his fingers on the armrest of one of the waiting room chairs, his legs pulled up to his chest, his head resting on his left arm, which draped over his knees. Everything just seemed like a blur when they got to the hospital. They managed to arrive the same time the ambulance got in. He could only watch in horror as they brought her out from the ambulance and into the building. The amount of wires and tubes that were attached to her and a strange foreign scent that was clung to her chilled Inuyasha to the bone. He tried to follow Kagome to one of emergency rooms. He didn't want her out of his sight. What happens if she gets hurt and he's not there to rescue her? It took five men to keep Inuyasha from following and it was Kagome's mother who finally told him to settle down or else he wouldn't be able to see her.  
  
So here he was, three hours later, sitting restlessly in a waiting room chair. He peeked his eyes from under his bangs to look at the table in front of him that held a half full ramen cup. His eyes then wandered around the walls and came across random peaceful paintings of either ocean or farm views. He made a quick glance to his 'mom' and saw she was still sleeping restlessly in one of the other chairs. He rested his forehead on his arm and started tapping his foot in annoyance. The wait was too long, and the scent that seemed to cling to Kagome when she came in scared him. The scent almost reminded him of death.  
  
His ears twitched and flattened to his head underneath the baseball cap. 'I hope she's okay...' he thought to himself. 'I'll never forgive myself if I loose you, Kagome.' Inuyasha closed his eyes balled up his fists, fighting back the tears that threatened to surface. He couldn't cry now. He had to stay strong for Kagome. Though right now he was ready to pray to any god that would listen to help in anyway possible.  
  
"Higurashi?"  
  
Inuyasha looked up and saw a tall man in a long white coat standing in the doorway. He walked over and pulled a chair up to them. Inuyasha sniffed the air and detected a small presence of Kagome. He looked over and saw Mrs. Higurashi in the next chair, resting her hand on his arm. "How is she, Doctor?" Mrs. Higurashi asked.  
  
The doctor leaned forward and placed his forearms on his knees, clasping his hands in front of him. "She's awake now and resting in her room...She..."  
  
Before the doctor could even finish his sentence the hanyou was up on his feet towering over the doctor. "Where is she?!" He turned his head to sniff the air, trying to pick up her scent, yet he found it hard with other smells such as medicines, illness and death that smothered the air. He finally managed to lock onto Kagome's scent he ran off before the doctor could answer.  
  
He didn't hear the reason why Kagome was bleeding in the first place. 


	8. Love that is gone

'....Clear!...'  
  
'...loss of blood...'  
  
'...heart stopped...'  
  
'...Kagome!....'  
  
'...almost lost her...'  
  
'...have to abort...'  
  
Kagome stared out the window to the city below in the dimly lit hospital room, her slender hands resting on her stomach as recent events played out in her mind. The blinding lights that moved swiftly over head, the random yelling of doctors, and with one voice that stood out from them all. Inuyasha's. She had tried to shout out his name, tried to reach for him, but she had felt too weak as the doctors brought her to an emergency room, where darkness took over.  
  
She curled her fingers against her stomach. The doctor had already talked to her about what happened. She closed her eyes. She didn't even know until it was too late. How was she going to explain this to Inuyasha? She continued to stare out the window. He wouldn't understand why they had to do it. He would be angry... would he even want her after this? She gripped the fabric of hospital gown gently. How could she mourn something that she didn't even know was there? She didn't even get a chance to get attached to it. No, not it, him, or her. A sudden new feeling washed over her. Guilt.  
  
Inuyasha slowly opened the door to Kagome's room. He flinched as a strong scent of medicines assaulted his nose. He stepped inside slowly and shut the door behind him. His chest tightened as he saw her. He didn't understand why all the tubes that were on her for, nor the annoying beeping noise coming from the boxes, all he knew was that it frightened him.  
  
"Kagome..?"  
  
She didn't move. He stepped forward and sat down in a chair next to her bed. He took her hand and growled softly noticing how cold they were. Kagome stayed silent, keeping her eyes locked on the window, almost as if she was refusing to look at him. He squeezed her hand. "Are you alright?" Nothing. "Kagome, look at me."  
  
She shook her head gently, and fisted her hand against her stomach. Inuyasha growled and felt a growing frustration in his chest. He sighed and reached out and took her chin in his hand and brought her face towards his. "Do you know what happened, Kagome?"  
  
She gave him a small, obviously fake, smile and moved his hand away from her chin. "The stress of everything that's happened just caught up with me, that's all."  
  
"You were bleeding..." he said bluntly.  
  
Kagome sighed, her smile quickly disappearing while she turned over onto her side. "Can we talk about this later? I'm tired." She pulled the covers up to her shoulders and curled up into a ball.  
  
Inuyasha growled softly again in frustration and sat on the bed below her curled up legs. He placed a hand on her shoulder and turned her onto her back. "No. We're talking about this now. Please, tell me what happened."  
  
Kagome gave an aspirated sigh pulled the covers over her head. "Inuyasha, please, just leave me alone."  
  
Inuyasha blinked and sat back, a defeated look on his face. She rejected him. Why didn't she trust him enough to tell him what was wrong? Why didn't she want him by her side? He shoved his arms into his sleeves. He lowered his head and whispered. "Kagome, you have no idea how scared I was today. I thought I was going to loose you."  
  
Kagome's breath caught in her throat. She slowly peeked out from under the blankets and saw his pitiful stature before her. She blinked a few tears from her eyes as she buried her head deeper into the pillow. "I really want to sleep now Inuyasha..." she closed her eyes and cursed herself for being so cruel to him. She knew he was trying to help and she wanted him to stay with her, to comfort her, but something in the back of her mind just told her that she needed to be alone, to sort out all the events that recently happened. Inuyasha wouldn't understand.  
  
'Of course he would understand, it was his child.' A part of her mind told her.  
  
'No, he wouldn't. He wouldn't understand why it had to be stopped.'  
  
'You're not being fair to him.'  
  
'And he's not being fair to me!'  
  
'Explain how that works?'  
  
Kagome growled to herself, refusing to answer her own question, and tucked into a tighter ball. "Go back to the feudal era, Inuyasha." She muttered into the pillow.  
  
Inuyasha narrowed his eyes and stood up. He muttered a soft "Keh" and walked over to the window.  
  
Kagome gripped the blanket around her and peeked an eye out to look at her mate's back. "I don't want everybody to worry... that's all..."  
  
Inuyasha just nodded and slid the window aside, jumping out of the window and into the night.  
  
Kagome let out a small whimper. "I'm so sorry..."  
  
~*~  
  
Sango sighed and ran both her hands through her hair and turned her gaze to the hanyou as they sat underneath the large infamous tree. She rested her head against its trunk as she thought back to only moments ago. She was surprised to see him so distraught when he walked into the hut. His posture was slumped, his hair hiding his face from showing any real emotion, his knuckles torn up as if he'd been beating on trees and rocks all day. He didn't even give them room to ask what was going on before he asked Sango to walk with him to the God Tree.  
  
So here they sat, in silence, Sango with her back against the tree and Inuyasha in front of her by a couple of feet picking at the grass. She brought her head forward and rested her arms on her lap. "How's Kagome?" she asked, finally breaking the silence as a gentle summer breeze played in their hair.  
  
Inuyasha made a quick sniff of the air and tilted his head further down and mumbled.  
  
Sango leaned forward. "Nani?"  
  
He growled softly and pulled out a couple blades of grass. "Something's wrong." He muttered. Sango raised an eyebrow and leaned forward again. Fear started to inch it's way up her spine as she tried to make out what Inuyasha was trying to say.  
  
She slid forward towards Inuyasha and stopped about a foot away. "What's wrong with Kagome?" She saw him shake his head.  
  
"She's doing alright... it's..." he stopped and began picking on the grass again.  
  
"'It's' what, Inuyasha? Is Kagome going to be fine or not?" She tried to keep her voice under control, but found it to be a loosing battle.  
  
"It's.....us..." he growled to himself at having to reveal so much information.  
  
Sango's eyes widened as realization finally clicked. She took a deep breath and ventured further. "Us? As in you and Kagome?"  
  
Inuyasha nodded. "I...asked her to be my mate...and now I think she's regretting it." He ran his hand through his hair and scratched one of his ears lazily. "She basically shunned me when I saw her at their healing place...she wouldn't tell me what was wrong..." He closed his eyes, surprised he was letting this much information out. But he didn't care, he trusted Sango. Trusted her to give him the right advice so he can fix whatever it is he did wrong.  
  
"Are you regretting it?" Sango asked.  
  
Inuyasha snapped his head up and glared at the girl. Maybe they did rush into things and she was just not capable of handling the responsibility. Was he even able to deal with it? He shook his head. No. He loved Kagome. There has to be something more than just regret of that night to be causing a rift this big. But the more he thought about it, the more he found himself confused by his own emotions. "I..... don't know.." He looked up and locked eyes with Sango. He took a deep breath and knew he what he was going to say next would seem out of character for him, but right now, he didn't care. "Honestly, I'm scared. I don't want to loose her. There has to be something more to this then just regret of um...." A tinge of red came across his face "...that." He saw Sango nod and patted the ground next to her.  
  
He moved over and sat next to her, placing his back against the tree as she did the same. She brought her legs to her chest and casually rested her arms on her knees. "Inuyasha." she said softly, getting the hanyou's attention. "Have you considered the fact that she could be with child?"  
  
Inuyasha's ears perked up and twitched nervously. 'With child...' he thought to himself. His eyes widened. He did notice a slight change of scent in her, he just thought nothing of it because of the marking, but the more he thought about it, there was a lingering scent of death...; his thoughts drifted off and he stood up quickly. "I have to go." And with that, he ran towards the well, leaving a stunned Sango behind.  
  
~*~  
  
The air licked at his hair with each leap into the sky with the sun setting at his back as he jumped from building to building towards the hospital. With every step he took, the growing knot of dread grew larger and tighter in his gut. He finally stopped in one of the trees at his final destination and sniffed the air. His eyes widened when he was met with Kagome's scent. He quickly followed it and found Kagome being escorted to her car in one of those moving chair things by her mom and a woman dressed in white. Was she going home already? He sniffed the air again and noticed the slight scent of salt. He rubbed his forehead with the heel of his palm and sighed. Why was she hiding something like this from him? Didn't she trust him enough? It's his child too, or is she to ashamed to be carrying a baby with demon blood? Maybe it was a mistake. A low growl started in his chest as he watched Kagome and her mom get into the car and start to drive of. He sighed and turned to head back towards the house.  
  
Her fingers idly played with the edge of her shirt as she watched the trees outside her window go by in silence. The sun was already setting, leaving behind a golden sky. 'Gold...same color as Inuyasha's eyes...' She rested her head against the glass window and sighed. Words couldn't even start to explain the feeling that was flowing through her veins. Numb? She blinked as a flock of birds flew into her vision. She closed her eyes and brought her hand up to grip the seatbelts shoulder strap. A small smile tugged at the corner of her lip with a memory of Inuyasha's first experience with a seatbelt. He managed to get it on okay, of course with the combination of her and Souta's help, and a string of cursing and questions from the boy of why he had to wear it in the first place. Yet when it came to taking it off, well that proved to be harder than fighting a demon. The seatbelt had to be replaced after that. She sighed as her thoughts were brought back to reality when the car finally stopped at the shrine. Her mother stepped out of the car with out a word and walked over to help Kagome out.  
  
"I can make it on my own mama..." she said softly as she stepped out of the car, using the car door for support. Mrs. Higurashi stepped back and nodded. The two have already talked about what has happened. Even though she said she wasn't angry with what she and Inuyasha had done, Kagome knew that deep down she was disappointed. She couldn't blame her anyway. She shut the car door and walked with her mother back into the house.  
  
Mrs. Higurashi slipped her shoes off in the hall and set her keys on the hook. "Why don't you go upstairs and rest and I'll see you morning."  
  
Kagome nodded as she made her way to the stairs. She stopped when her mother called her name. She turned to look over her shoulder and raised an eyebrow. "Yes mama?"  
  
"Do you know if Inuyasha will be coming tonight?"  
  
Kagome turned her head away from her mother and shrugged lightly. "I don't know mama...I really need to go rest now." And with that she left her mother at the bottom stairs. As she reached the top of the stairs she looked around bringing her eyebrows together. "Mama?" she called to the bottom of the stairs. She heard her mom acknowledge. "Where's Souta and Grandpa?" Kagome rested her hand on the banister as she waited for her mother's answer.  
  
"Souta is staying the night at a friends house and Grandpa is out visiting friends, He'll be back later tonight."  
  
Kagome nodded and said "okay" as she walked to her room. She rested her hand on the door handle and closed her eyes silently praying Inuyasha wasn't there. Yet, a part of her argued with that and prayed he would be there. She took a breath and held it as she opened her door to her room. She was only greeted with darkness. She let out her breath and shut the door behind her. Nope, no sign of Inuyasha. He was probably still mad at her. Wouldn't surprise her really. She ran her hands through her hair and scanned the moonlit room as she walked to her dresser. She quickly changed into a thin white spaghetti strap nightgown and brushed her hair. She stole a glance to her window and bit her lip slightly, pondering whether or not to turn off her a/c and open her window. She opted for the second and gently pushed the window aside.  
  
She was quickly met with the gentle sounds of the city, and a cool summer breeze that kissed her cheeks. She leaned against the windowsill with her forearms as her eyes scanned the grounds of the shrine. Her eyes fell upon the well house and a pang of sadness tugged at her heart. She quickly rubbed her eyes, willing the tears to stay at bay. She brought her hand to her neck and rubbed the muscles, tempting them to calm down as she made her way to the bed and slipping in between the covers.  
  
She didn't know how long she'd been asleep before she felt weight being added at the end of her bed. She opened her eyes and turn onto her back to see who it was and was met with two large golden eyes. She sunk back into her pillow and returned to her position of facing the wall. "Did you tell them that I was okay?" she mumbled into the pillow.  
  
"Why didn't you tell me?" Inuyasha whispered.  
  
Kagome blinked. She could probably make a pretty good guess as to what he was talking about, but instead she chose to ignore the question, and pulled the covers further over her shoulders. "I'm really tired, Inuyasha. Can we talk about this tomorrow please?" She bit her lip gently, waiting for her mate to answer.  
  
"No, we're talking about this now, and don't avoid the question, Kagome." He crossed his arms against his chest and stared at the girl that was curled up to his right. He heard her make a frustrated sigh.  
  
"I don't know what you're talking about." She muttered into the pillow.  
  
Inuyasha sighed, suppressing a growl. Why wasn't she answering him? He quickly slipped under the covers and spooned up behind her. "You know what I'm talking about, Kagome." His hand slid down to her stomach. His fingers curled against the fabric of her nightgown. He buried his face in the back of her neck and whispered. "Is the pup okay...?" his fingers began to gently run along her stomach.  
  
Kagome froze. How did he know? Did her mom tell him?  
  
Inuyasha brought her closer to his chest and he repeated, practically whimpering, his question, "Kagome... is the pup okay or not..?" Kagome's heart practically melted when she heard the pain in his voice. She slowly shook her head and closed her eyes.  
  
His grip on her tightened again. "What happened?" he was practically begging now and it tore at her soul.  
  
Kagome bit her lip and tilted her head towards her chest as she felt his hot breath against her neck. She stayed silent, gripping the blanket. Inuyasha narrowed his brow and slowly slipped out of the bed. Kagome pulled herself into a ball. Why was she acting like this? She wanted to tell him, wanted so badly for him to hold her in his arms and comfort her.  
  
"Why aren't you trusting me enough to tell me what's going on?" Inuyasha lowered his head and gripped his fists, facing the window. "Or is it you're just ashamed you mated with a half breed and is carrying his pup.." his voice trailed off and Kagome felt tears leak from her eyes.  
  
"You're wrong...." She whispered.  
  
"Wrong about what?" he bit back. "Kagome-"  
  
She gripped the blanket tighter, cutting into his sentence. "Wrong about me not trusting you, wrong about me being ashamed of being with you, and wrong about the pup." She closed her eyes and prayed to any god that would listen to give her strength for what she had to say next. "The baby was aborted..." she whispered softly.  
  
Inuyasha spun around to face Kagome and blinked, trying to comprehend what Kagome has just said. "Wait....aborted? What the hell does that mean!?"  
  
Kagome flinched at the harshness of his voice. 'Oh please kami let me get through this...' the young girl took a deep breath. "Because of complications that the demon most likely caused...they said if they hadn't stop the pregnancy... that..." her body shuddered. Inuyasha knelt down next to the bed and placed a hand on her shoulder, turning her to face him. He took her chin in his one of his large hands and made her look into his eyes.  
  
She blinked quickly, tears slowly leaking down her cheek. She could see the anger and fear mixed in his large golden eyes. And she was scared.  
  
"Does that mean..." He didn't have to finish his sentence. He already knew the truth. He saw the look her eyes. His pup didn't survive. That damn demon and those damn doctors took his pup away from him. He couldn't even tell what he was feeling. Anger and sorrow mixed together deep down in his soul, tearing apart his heart. He quickly stood up and went to the window, but before he was able to leap out he felt a tug on his shirt.  
  
"Don't go... please.." Kagome begged. Her large brown eyes pleading with him, boring into his very soul and shaking him to the core.  
  
He looked down, his bangs covering his eyes. He didn't know what to say to her. The pain of being around her at that moment was unbearable. He leaned down and kissed her forehead softly whispering a small apology and with that he leapt out of the window and into the warm summer night.  
  
~*~  
  
It was sometime after midnight. The moon was high in the sky as it's light reflected on the silent water of the hot spring. The clearing was absent of any being besides one. His form was hunched over on a single rock. His shoulders trembling as he slammed his fist into the offending object.  
  
"DAMNIT!" He swore over and over again while slamming his fist against the rock repeatedly. Damn the demons that hurt Kagome. Damn the "healers" that couldn't save their pup and taking him or her away from them. He turned his head towards the sky and screamed, pouring out his frustration, anger and sorrow. "Why?!" He glared at the full moon, cursing it as if it was it was all it's fault, and in exactly two weeks, he'll be human. He growled, fisting his hands against the rock. That damn new moon. He cursed it. He cursed his human form. He hated being weak on that night. He was human when the demon attacked and he couldn't protect her, couldn't protect their pup. He blinked his eyes, refusing to cry. Kagome probably hated him now.  
  
'Don't be stupid, she loves you.' A part of his mind said.  
  
'I was the reason the pup died..'  
  
'No, it was the demons fault.'  
  
'But I wasn't able to protect her!'  
  
He brought his hands to his head and ran his clawed fingers through his silver mane.  
  
"Inuyasha?"  
  
Inuyasha spun around to the voice that broke through the darkness and came face to face with Sango. She stepped forward and stood at the edge of the hot spring. He looked down and noticed she was holding bathing supplies.  
  
"Sorry.." he muttered as he quickly stood and leapt into the air, landing softly next to Sango. "I'll leave you alone." But before he was able to go any further he felt a hand gently grab his arm. He turned his head slightly, trying to avoid her gaze, but failed. He lowered his head and whispered, his voice coming out hoarse. "You were right." He brought his hand to his eyes and quickly rubbed them with the back of his hand.  
  
Sango tightened her grip and gently turned him to face her. "And?"  
  
Inuyasha shook his head. The images of everything that just transpired between him and Kagome rushing through his head. "The pup didn't survive." He managed to say. He gently took his arm away from her grasp and made his way back to the village.  
  
How was he going to be able to face Kagome after this?  
  
~*~  
  
A/N: Yes, I know, I'm evil for leaving it at that. Sorry it took so long to get this chapter up. School and vacation and such. Ya know the deal. Anywho, Chapter 9 should probably be up in about 2-3 weeks, pending what happens.  
  
And special thanks to my good friend Spag-chan who acted as my beta and helped me knock down the silly writers brick wall. 


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